Welcome to another wonderful picture book. This one is so good that we are doing a giveaway of it at the bottom. Brilliant author illustrator Lisa Brown’s The Airport Book is a fun-filled read about a family’s airplane trip where the reader is with them every step of the way. One of the best parts of this book is easily the diversity contained on every page but there's so much more. The main family the story follows is biracial, and you can see the rest of the recurring characters come from a wide variety of backgrounds and lifestyles as well. Nearly every page is filled with bright, colorful characters that travel with the main characters throughout the book, giving readers the ability to follow many of their stories as well. Lisa does a wonderful job of capturing the feel and craziness of an airport in the sense that there’s a lot going on and much to see wherever you look. Readers can definitely relate to the multiple characters as they go through security, wait for their flight, and enjoy their ride.

Even though on the surface this book is a simple trip to the airport and travel on a plane story, it holds phenomenal complexity in the multilayered story and images as we visually follow a great cast of characters throughout and the luggage's journey as well where the family's little girl's sock monkey has its own adventures.There's lots to see and love. Children who have never flown on an airplane will love learning what happens when they board a plane and they'll also be fascinated by all the activity and people present at airports. Even well-traveled flyers will look over the pages with remembrance of past trips and want to reread this delightful book over and over again. Lisa Brown does an absolutely wonderful job of depicting the chaotic nature of airports without making it overwhelming.

And now for a quick sneak peek video of this wonderful book and what makes it work followed by our easy peasy Giveaway question:

I'm a huge nonfiction fan, so for today's giveaway, I'd love to hear about your favorite nonfiction picture book and why it's a fave.. :) Also, please share this giveaway with your mates by simply clicking one of the social media icons to the left!

AND WE HAVE A WINNER!! Thank you everyone who answered the giveaway question, we have some lovely recommendations here and I'm absolutely looking forward to reading your favorite nonfiction books as well. It was a very difficult decision to choose just one winner, so I had to ask my assistant to make the final call. Congratulations goes to Claire B Cotts as the winner of our The Airport Book giveaway with her recommendation of The Blood Hungry Spleen, and Other Poems About Our Parts by Allan Wolfe and illustrated by Greg Clark. I looked it up and loved it so much I ordered my own copy, so be sure to check it out! Thank you, Claire!

Jolly, J. Tea and Sugar Christmas. (2014). Illustrated by Robert Ingpen. The story is told by an Aboriginal girl about how provisions were carried to the Australian outback town of Kalgoorlie in the early days. Like The Airport Book, Tea and Sugar Christmas is illustrated in both black & white and in colour, with colour also being utilised to highlight the more important information. Ingpen does a remarkable job illustrating the Provisions Van in a four-page spread. Other large spreads aid the reader to see the vastness of the outback, such as the bird's eye view of the township. Amy Cullen, the designer, has given considerable thought to the layout of this masterpiece, demonstrating teamwork at its best.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 03:50:19 pm

Lynette, Tea and Sugar Christmas sounds like a fascinating book and I can't wait to read it, especially since I have a weakness for most things from my native Australia. Thank you so much for sharing!

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Kathy Mazurowski

9/6/2016 08:01:27 pm

Can't wait to read this book. Love the colors on the cover.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 03:51:42 pm

Thanks for sharing, Kathy. Lisa does an absolutely marvelous job with this book!

Thanks for the peek inside this book. I heard about the book, but haven't seen any of the illustrations other than the cover. A really good nf book I enjoy is Ada's Violin: The Story of the Recycled Orchestra of Paraguay
by Susan Hood. A nice addition to any library. Thanks for the video Mira.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 03:56:01 pm

Keila, that sounds like a wonderfully intriguing book with great diversity and themes, so I can see why it'd be a favorite of yours. Thank you so much for sharing.

I know it's Wednesday but it's been a crazy week so I hope I can still comment on your Mondays With Mira! I had a favorite book when I was a kid and I think it qualifies as non-fiction. It was "What Do People Do All Day" by Richard Scarry. Published by Random House in 1968. (Boy I'm old) I sometimes think I'd love to illustrate the updated version, what a dream job for me!

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:04:02 pm

Penny, you're welcome to comment any day of the week! Richard Scarry certainly covered quite a few concepts for kids, so I can see why What People Do All Day would be a favorite, especially now that the unabridged version is now available. Work towards that dream job! Thanks for sharing, Penny.

(I commented in the wrong place) I LOVE the Airport Book! It's so beautiful! One of my very most favoritist books (it's so hard to choose just one!) is "The Adventures of Beekle, The Unimaginary Friend" by Dan Santat. I just love how, when Beekle is in his "Imaginary World," everything is so colorful. It's illustrated just as you would imagine such a place. And once he enters the "Real World", everything goes gray and dreary. It's a great use of colors to show what's real vs. this amazing augmented reality we are introduced to in the beginning, and it definitely draws a boundary between his world and ours. And the way Beekle and his friend meet is just so perfect...the way they're drawing each other, just the way kids would, and the way Dan uses the drawings to tell that part of the story for us. It's a beautiful book with a beautiful concept and just brings it all to life for kids who love their imaginary friends. =)

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:14:33 pm

Meredith, I'm glad you enjoyed The Airport Book! It's always difficult for me to choose a favorite book (or even two!) as well. The Adventures of Beekle, The Unimaginary Friend sounds wonderful, and it's clear you've put a lot of thought into the finer points of Dan Santat's illustrations, which I love. Thank you for sharing!

Richard Scarry's best word book ever is my fave non fiction. I remember spending ages each on page looking at all of the animals, also teaching my little brother new words at the time. He must have been about 4 and I was around 8. Ahh Those were the days!

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:17:22 pm

Another Richard Scarry fan! His work impacted the childhood of a lot of young readers, and I'm glad you have such good memories of that book. Thanks for sharing, Joanne!

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Carrie Fannin

9/15/2016 04:25:42 pm

This looks great!

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MIra Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:19:22 pm

The Airport Book is wonderfully charming. Let us know what you think once you've read it, Carrie!

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Lauren Soloy

9/15/2016 04:32:43 pm

This book looks really interesting! One of our favourite non-fic books is The Big Book of Bugs by Yuval Zommer!

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:23:37 pm

I truly do adore this book, Lauren, because it has so much to offer readers. Big books of all kinds are always fun! Thanks for sharing!

I'm looking forward to this one! My favorite nonfiction book is Laurie Walmark's Ada Lovelace and the Thinking Machine because the story of Ada Lovelace is eloquently told and the illustrations are divine!

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:41:29 pm

Nothing is better than a book where the story and illustrations create real magic, and Ada Lovelace's story is always enlightening. Thanks for sharing, Patricia!

My favorite nonfiction picture book at the moment is OTTERS LOVE TO PLAY by Jonathan London, illustrated by Meilo So.
The reason I love it is the lyrical language and the how the illustrations are loose and playful just like the otters that are spotlighted. I also enjoy how it's a nonfiction that is illustrated in a very fresh way, drawn with a spirit of freedom and colored with a harmonious color palette.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:44:25 pm

Books with lyrical language are favorites of mine as well, and this sounds like a fantastic and fun read. Thanks for sharing, Rebekah!

One of my favorite non-fiction picture books is The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdos. It’s a lovely story about Paul Erdos: his life and idiosyncrasies, how he saw the world differently—numerically, and how he loved the people he worked with. "Numbers and people were his best friends. I also really enjoy the wonderfully vivid artwork.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:49:24 pm

It's important that we have diversity in our books, and that goes for how we view the world and points of view as well. What a wonderful favorite book and thanks for sharing, Pascale!

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Kate Kaminski

9/16/2016 07:54:30 am

I was just organizing books in my daughter's school library. The TK teacher requested a dinosaur section and a transportation section, especially for her classes. Which I love. The Airport Book strikes a chord! My favorite nonfiction book is Me...Jane by Patrick McDonnell, a picture book about Jane Goodall. I love the idea of introducing really little kids to important people. It's a great way to create interest and lead them to more complete biographies as their reading levels increase.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:54:01 pm

You're quite right Kate, biographies are just as important for kids as they are for older readers, especially since books are commonly the way younger readers first learn about high profile people outside of their immediate family and social circles. That's a great choice for a favorite nonfiction book, and thank you for sharing it with us!

Water is Water by Miranda Paul. Beautifully illustrated and a lovely take on the water cycle. I love it! I also love the Airport Book! I checked it out from the library and read it to my daughter before we flew this summer, she loved it as well!

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:57:27 pm

Glad to hear you and your daughter both enjoyed The Airport Book! What a great way to start a trip. Water is Water is a beautiful book, I agree, and a lovely read by one of Children's Book Academy's former students, Miranda Paul. Thank for sharing with us, Cortney!

The airport book looks wonderful. Right now, my favorite nonfiction book is Poet: the Remarkable Story of George Moses Horton, by Don Tate. I love Don's Illustrations, and the story really is remarkable.

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 04:59:11 pm

Don Tate is a wonderful illustrator, and that's a great choice for a favorite nonfiction book. Thanks for sharing with us, Frances!

all about…..(wait for it…)
nostrils!
learn that no matter how tempting, it isn’t a good idea to put pebbles in your nose.
https://www.amazon.com/Holes-Your-Nose-Genichiro-Yagyu/dp/1929132824

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Mira Reisberg

9/21/2016 05:04:15 pm

Thank you for sharing, Claire. I was so intrigued by the poem you mentioned that I looked up the book, and I loved The Blood Hungry Spleen and Other Poems About Our Parts so much I had to buy a copy for myself. Congratulations again on being the winner of our giveaway! Please be sure to email me at mira@childrensbookacademy.com so we can make sure you receive your free copy of The Airport Book.